Impromptu | College of Arts & Humanities February Newsletter

impromptu A newsletter from the College of Arts & Humanities at MSU Moorhead

FEBRUARY 2021

FULBRIGHT ORGANIZATION AWARDS MSUM FILM PROF Dr. Anthony Adah, a professor in MSUM’s School of Media Arts and Design, received a prestigious U.S. Fulbright Scholar Award for the 2020-2021 academic year to research and teach in Nigeria. Adah is one of more than 800 U.S. citizens to conduct research and/or teach abroad through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government. Since its establishment in 1946, the Fulbright Program has enabled more than 390,000 dedicated and accomplished students, scholars, artists, teachers, and professionals of all backgrounds to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas, and find solutions to shared international concerns.

ENGLISH PROFESSOR’S LATEST NOVEL PUBLISHED English professor Lin Enger’s latest novel, American Gospel, was recently published by the University of Minnesota Press. Enger has published two previous novels, Undiscovered Country (Little Brown and Company) and The High Divide (Algonquin Press).

The High Divide was a finalist for awards from the Midwest Booksellers Association, the Society of Midland Authors, and Reading the West. Enger’s stories have been published in literary journals such as Glimmer Train, Ascent, and American Fiction. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Enger has received a James Michener Award, a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, and a Jerome travel grant. About American Gospel, Foreword Reviews wrote: “American Gospel is a glorious novel about what people choose to believe—and, more importantly, why they choose to believe it.”

Greetings. You are reading the inaugural newsletter from the College of Arts and Humanities. This monthly newsletter will celebrate our students, faculty, and alumni. Additionally, you will find a calendar of events and feature articles that will keep you informed about how we are transforming the world through transforming lives. I hope you enjoy reading about the people and programs in our College and share this information with others.

One of the many changes that occurred in 2020 was the reduction of academic Colleges from five to four. The newly created College of Arts and Humanities consists of the following departments: Department of English, Department of History, Languages and Humanities, School of Entertainment Industries and Technology, School of Art, School of Performing Arts, and the School of Media Arts and Design.

I want to hear from you and look forward to sharing your stories with the world.

Please send news items, images, and videos to Rebecca Sundet-Schoenwald at sundetre@mnstate.edu.

Dr. Earnest Lamb, Dean, College of Arts & Humanities

impromptu NATIONAL PUBLICATION RECOGNIZES ART ALUMNUS MSUM graphic design graduate Andy Bissonnette was named a national Emerging Artist by Ceramics Monthly in the May 2020 issue of the publication. A potter and teacher living and working in Minneapolis, Bissonnette is also currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in ceramics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Bissonnette worked for ten years in the advertising industry as a production designer before pursuing his artistic career and graduate education. His work has been featured in many exhibitions and art festivals.

He is currently represented at the Northern Clay Center in Minneapolis.

ART EDUCATION STUDENT RECEIVES FELLOWSHIP MSUM art education student Dennis Williams recently received the Artists in Business Leadership fellowship from the 2020 First Peoples Fund (FPF). He has also received recognition and support from the Gizhiigin Arts Incubator, which provides professional photography of his pieces and connects him with international press. Williams works in several mediums that involve the modern-day powwow – grass dancing, chicken dancing, oratory stories, beading, and regalia making. The awards also commend Williams for founding a dance troupe called “Naamijig” (The Ones Who Dance). According to FPF, Williams’ dance troupe and art are becoming a recognized brand. With his MSUM education on hold due to the COVID-19 crisis, he continues to make regalia and hopes to expand his bead working into a career, along with other art mediums. Williams lives in Little Cormorant near Audubon, Minn., and is a member of the White Earth Nation-Pillager Band of Ojibwe.

MUSIC FACULTY MEMBERS CREATE VIDEO MASTERCLASSES MSUM School of Music faculty members Dr. Tom Strait and Dr. Kenyon Williams brought their music to audiences across the region. Williams created online masterclasses for North Dakota and Minnesota students preparing All State auditions, and The Minnesota Percussion Association featured his videos at the “Virtual Day of Percussion” earlier this month. The Fargo Moorhead Symphony Orchestra’s virtual performance of Shostakovich’s “Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Trumpet, and Strings, taped live and streamed last month, featured Strait on solo trumpet, along with internationally renowned guest pianist Ieva Jokubaviciute.

IN MEMORIAM Former music faculty member Dr. Al Noice passed away Aug. 24 in San Diego. During WW II, Noice was assigned to a music group in the U.S. Marine Corps. After his military service, Noice played with a number of different big bands and orchestras and toured the country with these groups. He also directed his own band, playing most of the famous ballrooms, especially in the Midwest. His band was voted the top orchestra in Minneapolis in 1957 and 1958.

Noice was a graduate of the MacPhail College of Music in Minneapolis, and taught high school band in Ceylon, Minn., before heading to the University of Northern Colorado for his doctorate. He joined the faculty of MSUM and built the MSUM Jazz Program into one of the premiere jazz programs in the Upper Midwest. After 25 years at MSUM, Noice and his wife Shauna moved to San Diego, where he continued to perform as a member of the Pacific Coast Concert Band, the Pomerado Community Band, and the Coastal Communities Concert Band. Shauna preceded her husband in death and both are buried at Miramar National Cemetery in San Diego.

impromptu SPRING 2021 EVENTS

APRIL

FEBRUARY

10

BFA and Graphic Design Show 1 22 (through March 25)

12

online reception Feb. 25 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Senior Recital, Peter Nelson In person and streamed, Gaede Stage, 2 p.m.

Panoply: Faculty Exhibition (through May 14) online reception April 29 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Ensemble Concert 26 InJazzperson and streamed, Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

MARCH Ensemble Concert 05 InWind person and streamed, Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

Recital with Amy Mercer, piano 06 InFaculty person and streamed, Fox Recital Hall, 7:30 p.m.

Ensemble Concert 22 InCommercial person and streamed, Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

String Ensemble Concert 29

In person and streamed, Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

DISTANCE (Theatre, SoMAD and EIT) 29 Streamed online premiere, 7:30 p.m.

See SoMAD’s Facebook page for more information.

Film Capstone Project Screening 30 You Tube Premiere – Like SoMAD’s Facebook page for more information closer to the event, 7 p.m.

24

Guitar Ensemble Concert Streamed only, Glasrud Auditorium in Weld Hall, 7:30 p.m.

Percussion Ensemble Concert 26

In operson and streamed, Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

27

Junior Recital, Brian Sterriker In person and streamed, Gaede Stage, 2 p.m.

29

BFA and Graphic Design Show 2 (through April 22) online reception April 1 from 5 to 7 p.m.

info-circle Please Note: MSUM’s Roland Dille Center for the Arts

Gallery is currently closed to the public. Please visit the gallery website or Facebook page to view exhibitions online, zoom links for the the receptions, and for updates on re-opening. www.mnstate.edu/academics/colleges-schools/art/gallery

MAY

01

In person and streamed, Gaede Stage, 1 p.m.

01

In person and streamed, Gaede Stage, 4 p.m.

01

Streamed only, Gaede Stage, 7:30 p.m.

Senior Recital, Bradee Isbell Junior Recital, Nora Christianson Senior Recital with Kara Brusven

Virtual Choir Concert 04 Live on Facebook, 7:30 p.m.

School of Media Arts and Design Film and 07 Animation Celebration Screening

You Tube Premiere – Like SoMAD’s Facebook page for more information closer to the event, 7 p.m.

Because of the uncertainty regarding COVID-19, please look for possible changes to in-person, on-campus events when you visit mnstate.edu/tickets.

MNSTATE.EDU/TICKETS Minnesota State University Moorhead is an equal opportunity educator and employer. This information will be made available in alternate format, or if a disability-related accommodation is required, please contact Accessibility Resources at 218.477.4318 (voice) or 1.800.627.3529 (MRS/TYY).